Police in Kiambu County have arrested a 44-year-old man accused of killing his girlfriend last Sunday, April 18.
Franklin Munyao, a waiter by profession, is accused of strangling his 40-year-old lover in Kambi Moto Village in Ruiru.
Neighbours told The Standard that Munyao’s girlfriend was last seen in public on Sunday daytime when hanging clothes on a communal clothesline.
On Tuesday, a foul smell emanating from Munyao’s one-roomed house prompted neighbours to file a report with police.
Authorities rushed to Munyao’s house, where they broke down his door and found the deceased wrapped in a nylon bag and placed on the bed. Her pair of trousers had slightly been lowered.
According to residents, the woman visited Munyao a few times a month.
“We did not know the lady had been killed. Munyao would routinely leave the house in the morning and return in the evening,” said John Ngara, neighbour.
“We even saw him leaving for work this morning (Tuesday, April 20). We’re shocked to learn that he was staying with a dead woman’s body in his house,” added Ngara.
Police say Munyao’s girlfriend had decomposed, indicating she was probably killed on Sunday, more than 48 hours ago.
“Besides a foul smell, we had noticed a swarm of flies clustering in the suspect’s house through the ventilation, suggesting all was not well,” said Mary Kibathi, another neighbour.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives said there were marks on the woman’s neck, indicating she had been strangled.
Ruiru Sub-County Police Commander, Phineas Ringera, said a multi-agency team comprising police officers and DCI detectives tracked down the suspect to his workplace, a restaurant on Thika Road, where he was arrested.
“We have since collected the woman’s body and taken it to General Kago Funeral Home for postmortem,” said Ringera.
Police are seeking to establish what led to the fatal attack on Munyao’s lover.
The suspect is being detained at the Ruiru Police Station, Ringera said.
In less than one week, at least three women have been killed by their spouses in Kiambu County alone.
Last week, a 38-year-old man, Evans Karani, was arrested after allegedly murdering his 25-year-old girlfriend, Catherine Nyokabi.
Karani, who has since confessed to killing Nyokabi after she allegedly left him for another man, is in police custody for 14 days to allow for investigations.
